The Stalker (Elvis Presley Story)

Chapter 8

"I warned you" Steph reminded Melissa in the motel room later that night. "Didn't I say Gray would jump all over you if you made a single mistake?"

"Yes, steph, you told me. Thanks a lot for the reminder," Melissa said Sarcastically. "I feel so much better now."

"Hey, I didn't mean it like that," Stephanie protested as she toweled her hair dry.

Sure you didn't, Melissa thought.

"Actually, I was trying to cheer you up," She continued. "Except for Michael, nobody else but Gray notices you missed all those steps in the opening number. That's what I meant he's such a perfectionist, he sees every picky little thing. Try not to let him get you down."

Sure, Melissa thought again. Gray had only chewed her out in front of dozens of people. It was impossible not to feel down about something like that.

"Did you explain what happened, Melissa?" Toni asked. "About the call and everything?"

"I started to, but he didn't want to hear it."

Melissa sat on the bed. "He just said I shouldn't have taken a call so close to curtain, and then he walked away."

"Try not to feel so bad," Toni said sympathetically, as she got into bed. "If I'd gotten a call like that, I wouldn't have made it onstage. I don't know how you managed to dance at all after what he said to you."

"It was awful," Melissa agreed. "He's starting to drive me nuts! Flowers and letters and now a call. I don't know what he'll try next!" She shoved her pillow against the headboard and leaned back.

"Ive tried to tell him how I feel, but it's like he doesn't even hear me."

"Crazies like this don't care how their victims feel, they say they do, but all they really care about is themselves."

Victim.

It sounded so weak. Helpless, Melissa thought. And she'd never felt weak or Helpless in her life. She'd fight, if only he'd show his face.

"He's obsessed," Toni went on, telling him to stop won't work."

"So what am I supposed to do?" Melissa cried.

"I say go to the police," Toni declared.

"Time out, guys," steph interrupted. "I still say you're all overreacting."

"You didn't hear him on the phone, steph," Melissa pointed out. "I did. Whispering so I won't recognise his voice."

"Whispering?" Toni said. "Do you still think it's jimmy?"

Melissa thought for a moment. At first I did, but now I'm not so sure," She admitted.

"Who else could it be?" Steph asked.

Toni sat up and wrapped her arms around her knees. "I hate to say this, but I was talking to some of the crew and..." She hesitated and took a deep breath. "Well, this girl named kathy bennett - she was just starting to make it on Broadway when she was brutally murdered. They never caught the killer."

"People do get murdered in New York, you know," Steph pointed out. "What does that have to do with Melissa?"

"The papers said she was the victim of a stalker. A fan." Toni bit her lip. "And before she went to New York, kathy bennett was in this theater company!"

Brutally Murdered.
The victim of a stalker.

The words kept spinning through Melissa's mind as she tried to go to sleep. Shivering, she tugged up the cover and rolled over. She was on the side of the bed nearest the window. Through the gap in the drooping  curtain, she could see the hazy light from the moon. She shut her eyes against it.

Almost immediately, she began thinking about her "biggest fan." His call, his words, had made her so nervous she'd messed up in the show. She couldn't let that happen again, but she didn't know how to stop it.
Was it jimmy? Or someone else? Would he ever leave her alone?

Kathy bennett's "fan" hadn't. Not until she'd been brutally murdered.

Brutally Murdered.

Squeezing her eyes tight, Melissa tried to shut the words out of her mind. Think of Elvis, she told herself. Picture his face. Remember the way he brushed your hair back. How warm his breath felt when he whispered in your ear.

It didn't work. The memory of the caller kept intruding. Shattering Elvis's image with his eerie, muffled voice.

How would she ever get to sleep?

Sighing, Melissa decided to get up. Maybe a drink of water would help. As she swung her legs over the side of the bed, she glanced at the window.

And froze in terror.

Through the gap in the curtain, two eyes peered into the room.

Two eyes, focused hungrily on Melissa's face.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter! And thank you so much for reading! Xoxo